The Once and Future King
by Prince Arjuna
Summary: Now freed from her deal with the Counter Force, King Arturia Pendragon died and went to Avalon, where she would wait until the time when she was truly and desperately needed. When an earnest prayer reached out for her, she couldn't find it in her to ignore it. Answering the prayer, the Once and Future King brought herself back to life.
1. Chapter 1

The king once thought that her reign was a mistake. She once wished that she could undo the mistake of pulling the sword out of the stone, the very act that allowed her to be a king in the first place.

Yes, she did become a king. A perfect king, in fact. But, in becoming a king, she abandoned her humanity. She was aware of it the moment she drew the blade out of the stone, knowing that becoming a king means no longer being human. A king needs to cast aside things like emotions or feelings in order to protect the people and the kingdom.

She became the epitome of chivalry and selflessness, being revered as a savior by her people. She was perfection personified, a perfect ruler who would bring her people to an everlasting utopia. Still, her perfection also isolated her from her people, as she had cast away her humanity.

 _"King Arthur does not understand human feelings."_

Those were the words uttered by one of her knights, who noted that as a king, she was too perfect. Some of them felt that one without emotions could not rule others, leading to them abandoning the kingdom. As a king who had thrown away her feelings, she accepted this as a natural event which was a part of her kingship. Even though she was isolated from her knights and her people, there was no denying that she was the greatest among kings, the King of Knights.

While her path of kingship led her kingdom to flourish, that very same path also led it to its downfall. It was due to her inability to understand her people, her insistence on walking through her path in her lonesome that caused her kingdom to crumble. Tragedies after tragedies, the king began to realize that her kingship was a failure, and she thought that it would have been better if she had never pulled out the sword in the first place. She thought that it was due to her failure that her kingdom was in ruin.

Before drawing her last breath, the king appealed to the World, offering her servitude as a Heroic Spirit so that she could be given an opportunity to save her ruined kingdom with the Holy Grail. She believed that it would be better if someone else, one who was better than her, could pull the sword out of the stone and become the king instead. As a part of the deal she made with the World, upon achieving the Holy Grail, she would become a Counter Guardian, an agent of the collective consciousness of humanity. She considered it a fair trade, as she thought that sacrificing her afterlife would be worth it. While she still considered her kingship a mistake, she still considered herself a king through and through, and she would sacrifice herself for her people and her kingdom.

Still, after being summoned as a Servant for two Holy Grail Wars, after encountering numerous adversaries and hardships, the king slowly began to realize that while her being a king was a mistake that brought her kingdom to ruin, she was not wrong. After seeing a young man who was forced to learn that his ideal was a mistake, but was still adamant in pursuing it, she began to understand why she was tormented by her own failures. She understood that while she might have failed as a king, her pursuit to become an ideal king, the perfect king who would place others before herself, she was not wrong.

In the end, she rejected the Grail, destroying it. In turn, she broke her deal with the World, releasing her from her contract with the Counter Force. The king, now freed from her guilt and regrets, could only look at her past with lingering sadness as she moved on, knowing that she was not wrong in her path of kingship.

After breathing her last, the king neither ascended to the Throne of Heroes nor was assimilated by Akasha, but instead she went to Avalon, the final resting place of King Arturia Pendragon, the King of Knights. As the Once and Future King, she would remain there, slumbering, until the time when she was truly and desperately needed.

* * *

 _"Here lies Arthur, king once, king to be."_

* * *

"Issei-san!"

A cute, golden-haired nun clad in a dark green dress cried as her newfound friend, a boy with spiky brown hair, was mercilessly pummeled by a dark-haired woman. There was a pair of black wings on the woman's back, indicating that she was inhuman in nature. That twisted grin on her face also made her almost seem demonic.

She might have appeared stunningly beautiful if not due to the aforementioned grin.

"Ergh…" Despite the violent assault by the winged lady, the boy picked himself up, clutching his injured shoulder. There was a hole in his shoulder, courtesy of the winged lady, who cackled upon seeing the boy's pained expression. "I… I won't let you…" The boy said throatily as he glared at the winged lady. "I won't let you hurt Asia!"

"Kehehehehe… for an insect, you sure are very hard to kill…" The winged lady said as she held out her right hand, conjuring a spear that seemed to be made of pure light. She walked over to the boy's direction in a rather sensual manner as she expanded her wings. "You remind me of cockroaches, Issei. They're hard to kill, you know?" She purred as she held the spear that she had conjured a while ago with both hands vertically before she did a suggestive motion by moving one of her hands up and down. "Well, you're not really my objective this time. What I want now is her." She looked at the golden-haired nun, who felt intimidated by her look. "But, considering that I want you dead too, I guess I should kill you now…"

The boy, the one who was called Issei by both the winged lady and the golden-haired nun, let out a grunt. He glanced at the cute nun behind him, whose eyes were teary before he looked back at the winged lady, who swung her spear of light a few times. "Hey, you already killed me once. Give me a break, will you?" He tried to find a way to get away from this situation so that he could escape with the nun he befriended.

The winged lady giggled. "My, I never thought you were the type to joke while facing his own imminent death, Issei-kun," she said in a cutesy voice. Issei flinched, as if trying to suppress the memories of the girl he dated before. The girl was also the one who killed him after their date. He still could remember the feeling of having a spear of light piercing through his chest, which caused him to shudder. He swore that he still could feel the pain of being pierced.

Still, he was alive, thanks to the machination of his senpai, Rias Gremory. He was no longer a human, but a Devil. He took the fact rather well, considering that by becoming a Devil, he could make his own harem. Still, that was a matter for another time, because there was a crazy winged lady trying to kill him while wanting to take his new friend away from him.

"M-Miss Raynare!" The cute nun shouted. "P-please don't hurt Issei-san! I-I'll follow you, but please don't hurt him!" Tears flowed unbidden down her cheeks as she begged. "P-please… I'm the one you wanted, r-right?"

"A-Asia…" Issei looked at the nun, not realizing that the winged lady, Raynare, was approaching him. She tried to stab him with her spear, but he managed to evade it in the nick of time. Still, the attack managed to graze his chest a bit, and considering his nature as a Devil, the spear made of light was poisonous to him. "Ergh!" Even though it was merely a graze, the injury caused by the spear still caused a great deal of pain for him.

Raynare, who let out a grunt after failing to stab Issei, twirled her spear before she looked at the nun. "Ah, what a good girl. Still, no can do. I'm going to kill him because he should've died when I killed him before. Consider this as unfinished business," she said before she went after Issei, attacking him mercilessly.

The nun could only stare in horror as Issei was pummeled by Raynare, and she was unable to do anything about it. Sniffing, she brought her hands together and prayed.

"P-please…"

While she knew that it may have been useless, because she had been excommunicated by the Church, she still wanted to do something, anything to save her friend. She might have been damned, but she still tried to pray so that her friend could be saved.

"Please… save Issei-san. P-please save my friend…"

* * *

The king jerked her head as she was awakened from her slumber. She was resting under a tree in Avalon, a realm unaffected by time and space, free from the influence of the World. She would remain there until the time when she was truly needed. As the King of Knights, she considered it her responsibility as a king to deliver salvation to those who desperately needed her help.

Because she no longer had a contract with the World and did not ascend to the Throne of Heroes, she was not restricted by any higher powers. In Avalon, her actions would be decided all by herself. After all, as the Once and Future King, she could freely choose whether to appear in the world or not.

 _"Please… save Issei-san. P-please save my friend…"_

While slumbering, she heard a prayer, an earnest prayer of a girl who wanted to save her friend from injustice. It was a miracle that such a prayer managed to reach her, the one who was outside of time and space. And as a knight, letting such an earnest prayer go unanswered was against everything that she stood for.

Perhaps it was fate that caused the prayer to reach her in the first place? Whether or not that was the truth, the king had no idea.

Now that she had heard the prayer, to let it go unheeded for a long time would sully her pride as a knight. The king got up from her resting place and walked towards the clearing. Her one-piece dress was replaced by her armor as she walked. She looked up to the sky and closed her eyes.

The King of Knights shall continue her reign on Earth.

* * *

"Argh!"

Raynare kicked Issei's head after thrashing him endlessly. The boy no longer had the strength to stand his ground as his body was situated on solid concrete. The nun, Asia, cried out his name while her hands were still held together in a prayer. Now that the Devil was beaten half-dead, Raynare grinned as she lifted her spear of light.

"So, you're going to die now, insect?" Raynare asked as she stood over Issei's broken body. "Okay then, die now."

"Issei-san!"

Asia screamed. And at that instant, there was an explosion of light right in front of Raynare. Caught off-guard by the explosion, she barely evaded a sudden gust of wind that emerged from the light. She expanded her black wings before she leaped a few meters back, her eyes widened in bewilderment.

As the light faded, near Issei, there was a golden-haired woman clad in a blue dress underneath shiny armor. Her body was surrounded by golden dust, making her appearance seem mystical in nature. Then, she opened her eyes, revealing a pair of light green pupils. The woman wore a neutral expression as she studied her surroundings. Despite her slender physique and unimpressive height, the way she presented herself upon emerging from the light almost made Raynare drop to her knees.

Raynare was, for lack of a better word, bewildered. How could anyone exert such authority in the first place? Raynare could feel rage building up inside her chest the more she acknowledged this unknown woman's presence.

As for Asia, she was astonished by the appearance of the armored woman. The nun noted that she was inhumanly beautiful and regal. As she continued looking at the woman, she let out a yelp as she felt a stinging pain on the back of her left hand. She looked behind her hand and saw a mark forming on it. The mark was red in color and shaped like an upturned cross.

"Y-you…!" Raynare snarled. "Y-you think I'm afraid of you?! Think again!" Enraged, she conjured a dozen spears of light around her, and all of them were primed at the armored woman.

Wordlessly, the armored woman turned to face Raynare before she leaped forward. In an instant, she managed to close the distance between her and Raynare with just a mere leap, and the latter immediately fired her spears of light at the former.

Logically speaking, the armored woman should've been skewered by the spears, but the spears spontaneously disintegrated when they were mere inches away from her. Panicking, Raynare tried to get away from her, but with a great leap, the armored woman rushed towards her, holding a sword that seemed to be invisible. In desperation, Raynare conjured a spear of light in order to take the armored woman head-on.

"Too slow."

Raynare's eyes widened in surprise as she looked at her right arm, which was no longer attached to her shoulder. The arm, still holding the spear of light she conjured earlier, twitched as a puddle of blood formed from the severed stump. It took her a few moments to register the fact that her arm was sliced off by the armored woman's invisible blade.

"M-my arm? My arm?!" Raynare started feeling the pain of having her arm sliced off. She immediately brought her other hand to the stump on her shoulder, screaming, "You cut my arm?!" She glared at her attacker, who shifted her position as she wielded her invisible sword with both hands.

"Give up," the armored woman spoke. "Your life shall be ended by my blade. Useless struggling will only bring you more pain and suffering." Her tone was calm and even, and there was no hint of hesitation in her voice as she looked at Raynare in her eyes.

"Ergh…" Now cornered, Raynare was completely under the armored woman's mercy. But before she could deliver the final blow, a spear of light suddenly descended from above, zooming towards the armored woman's unprotected back. But just like before, the spear disintegrated before it could even harm her. Apparently, Raynare had her own helper, who turned out to be a middle-aged man clad in a long coat and fedora, and just like her, he also had a pair of black wings.

Still, the spear had managed to distract the unknown woman, and Raynare immediately saw this as her chance to leap away, using her wings to flee. Still clutching onto the stump on her shoulder, she flew away with her cohort who threw a spear of light earlier.

Clicking her tongue, the armored woman lowered her invisible sword before she dismissed it. Raynare had escaped her. Still, she managed to save the life of the boy who was almost killed by Raynare earlier. She turned around to see the boy, who was being tended to by Asia. Her hands were glowing, and she instantly knew that the nun had some kind of healing power.

She walked over to the pair, and the sounds of clicking from her greaves made Asia stop her healing spell and look up to see the one who saved her friend's life earlier. Still wearing a neutral expression on her beautiful visage, she stood in front of Asia before she spoke, "I heard your prayer earlier." Her expression softened. "I couldn't find it in me to ignore such an earnest prayer." She glanced at Issei, who was unconscious due to the vicious beatings he received from Raynare earlier. "I take it that he is fine."

Asia stared at the armored woman, dumbfounded. A few moments later, she spoke, "W-who are you?"

At first, she considered calling herself Saber, the label that she used to call herself back when she fought for the Holy Grail. But then, she remembered that she was no longer associated with such a thing, and her deal with the World had been severed. To call herself Saber was a meaningless gesture. And she thought telling the nun the truth wouldn't hurt either.

"My name is Arturia," she introduced herself. "Arturia Pendragon, the King of Knights. I am the King of Camelot, the Once and Future King." Both pairs of green eyes were looking into each other.

A brief moment of silence had passed until the woman named Arturia Pendragon spoke once more.

"I ask of you: Are you my Master?"

 **TO BE CONTINUED  
**

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Hello, this is me, Prince Arjuna. This is a one-shot that I've been meaning to write after seeing a prompt in Spacebattles forum. As you can see, this is only a one-shot due to the fact that I can't afford to write a new multi-chaptered story right now. I have a lot of stories to update, see? So, as you can see, the Saber who shows up in this one-shot is post UBW True End Saber, who severed her pact with Alaya, no longer tied with the Counter Force and went to Avalon as the Once and Future King. She can return to the world whenever she is truly and desperately needed, but only by her own choice - no power can coerce or summon her unless she wills it so. Let's just say she's the opposite of the Counter Guardian.

Also, special thanks for **Sorata Shioya** for beta-reading this chapter. It's so nice to work alongside you, as always. So, I hope you like this one-shot, and I'll be glad if you can give me some reviews. You know, like some kind of encouragement or something? Maybe with enough reviews, I can be motivated to write multi-chapter version? Who knows?

 **Prince Arjuna (2015)**

 **Edit:** Who am I kidding? Multi-chapter story is the way to go!


	2. Chapter 2

Asia Argento felt a bit troubled as she looked at the one who called herself the King of Knights, Arturia Pendragon. Currently, both of them were in a spare bedroom in the Hyoudou residence.

Noticing the golden-haired nun's troubled look, Arturia turned and spoke, "Is something the matter, Master? Are you unwell?" Despite her calm look, there was a hint of worry in her tone as she spoke to Asia.

"Ah, n-no! It's nothing!" Asia shook her head. "P-please do not mind me, Miss Arturia!"

Arturia blinked and tilted her head. "You are definitely troubled, Master." She went closer to the golden-haired nun. "Please, do tell. Are you perhaps worried about our current arrangement? Is this place not suited to your liking?"

"I-it's nothing like that! I-it's just…" Asia hesitated. "W-well… I've been a trouble to you, Miss Arturia. I can't speak Japanese, and now I can only rely on you…" She looked down, feeling a little ashamed.

A while ago, after everything that happened, Arturia escorted both Asia and Issei, who was already conscious but still dazed, to the latter's house. Asia could not speak Japanese and could only speak Italian and English, so Arturia spoke on her behalf to Issei's parents, telling them that the boy was somehow involved in some sort of accident, explaining the injuries he had on his body. And thanks to Asia's ability to use healing spells, all the worst wounds he received, like the one in his shoulder, had been fully healed.

And considering that Asia had no place to live at the moment, Arturia asked Issei's parents to allow them to stay in the Hyoudou residence for a night. Due to the fact that both Arturia and Asia had no money with them, they couldn't go to a hotel to stay for a night. And both parents of the boy, despite their apparent eccentricities, were a pair of pleasant and good-hearted people. After realizing that the girls had no money with them, Issei's parents immediately welcomed both of them to stay at their place for a night.

The king was eternally grateful for their good-naturedness. Even though both of them were strangers to the couple, they were still willing to welcome them with open arms.

Now that they were given a place to stay, Arturia believed that it was the right time for her to address their current situation to Asia. Already clad in a white blouse and a blue skirt, Arturia stood in front of Asia, her expression remaining neutral. Despite that she was no longer clad in her shining armor, Asia couldn't help but feel that the woman who stood before her was still very regal in appearance. Actually, she had somehow magically changed her clothes before coming to the Hyoudou residence. After all, wearing that armor might make her stick out like a sore thumb.

"Master…" Arturia began. "Regarding what happened earlier, I heard your prayer…" She looked into Asia's green eyes as she spoke. "It was a simple, yet earnest prayer, and I couldn't find it in my heart to let it go unheeded. As a knight, ignoring a cry for help is against everything I stand for."

"Y-you heard my prayer…?" Asia looked at Arturia in astonishment. "Are you perhaps a messenger of God? Or perhaps an Angel?" She had seen Angels before, but only the fallen ones. One of them was Raynare, the one who tried to kill her friend, Issei.

"No." Arturia shook her head. Being likened to an Angel felt strange to the king, but she let it slide for the time being, thinking that Asia might still be confused by what had happened to her. "Like I told you earlier, I am Arturia Pendragon. You might know me as King Arthur Pendragon…" During her reign, she had concealed her true gender. As a king, she considered her gender as something irrelevant. So, it was only natural that she was known as a man in recorded history.

"H-how…?" Asia became more and more confused. She used to be a part of the Church, so she was taught many things, including the legend of King Arthur. To her knowledge, there was nothing that indicated King Arthur being a woman.

Seeing Asia's confused expression, the king smiled a little as she spoke, "It is a long story, a story that may take many days to finish. But for the time being, I shall explain to you about the mark on the back of your hand."

"Mark?" Asia looked at the back of her left hand. "You mean this?" She showed the mark to Arturia.

"Yes, that mark. The mark is the sign of our connection, the connection between a Master and a Servant," Arturia explained. "I am bonded to you through this mark, the Command Seals. With these Command Seals, you can order me to do absolutely everything, even things I may be uncomfortable with. In order to manifest myself into this world, I chose to become a Servant to you so that I could answer your prayer, Asia Argento."

"M-Miss Arturia… th-this is…" Asia stared at the inverted cross on the back of her left hand with widened eyes. "Just because of my prayer, y-you're willing to…" She gave Arturia a sad look. "This isn't necessary. Just for the sake of someone as insignificant as me, y-you…" She shook her head. "W-why…?"

"Master…" Arturia spoke softly. "Before I heard your prayer, I resided in Avalon, a place outside of time and space. It should be impossible for something from this world like a prayer to reach me, and yet, I was able to hear it. It has to be the will of fate itself that allowed such a thing to happen. So, in order to answer your prayer, I willed myself back to life into the world as the Once and Future King, and bonded myself to you as your Servant." She lowered herself and then held Asia's marked hand, tracing the lines of the mark with her fingers gently. "I know I can trust you, Master. I know I can trust my whole existence in your hands…"

"Miss Arturia…" Asia stared at the king in amazement. Then, she smiled. "Thank you…" She brought her other hand up to hold Arturia's. "Thank you for answering my prayer. For someone like me… for the sake of a lost lamb like me, you're willing to do such a thing." She brought Arturia's hand to her forehead, touching it lightly on the knuckle. "I am grateful." She looked back at the king, barely holding back tears.

Arturia smiled as she looked at Asia's face. Then, she let go of her hand and stood up. "Even so, there is still another matter that needs to be addressed. About that woman…" She was referring to Raynare, the one who tried to kill Asia's friend and take her away. "What is she?"

"Sh-she's… Miss Raynare, a Fallen Angel…" Asia said.

"What does such a corrupted creature want from a saint such as you, Master?" Arturia asked.

Hearing the king calling her a saint made the nun flinch. "I-it's… it's because… I broke a rule." She looked sad as she gently rubbed the mark on the back of her left hand. "I once belonged to the Church. You can say that I practically grew up in a monastery since I was young. And thanks to the power that I have, I made many friends. I was happy at that time." She looked at her palms. "As long as I have this power, I believed that I could live happily. But then, I broke a rule, and I was excommunicated."

Arturia had an unreadable expression on her face. "Excommunicated? Master…" She studied the ex-nun's face carefully. "What did you do?"

After a few moments of silence, Asia spoke hesitantly, "I… I used my power to heal a Devil, an enemy of God."

For a while, Arturia did not say anything. Then, she moved to sit beside Asia on the bed, and she looked straight into Asia's eyes. "Master…" This time, her tone was authoritative and demanding. "Please tell me more. Please tell me more about your excommunication and the act that caused you to be condemned by the Church. Tell me everything," she ordered.

* * *

Asia was soundly sleeping on her borrowed bed while Arturia was sitting on it, seemingly mulling over something. Earlier, the ex-nun had explained everything about her situation while in tears, and the king ended up comforting her as she cried. Arturia was processing the information that she received from Asia, regarding her excommunication and her being transferred to Japan. And there was also another matter regarding the Fallen Angels.

While she never encountered them when she was still alive, she had heard many things about these corrupted creatures. Fallen Angels are creatures tainted with sins. Their entire existence is fundamentally corrupted. For such a pure-hearted person like Asia to be involved with these creatures, the king couldn't help but feel her rage slowly building up in her chest. It was a rare moment for a usually calm person like her to be enraged by such a thing.

Arturia closed her eyes. Even though her existence was similar to that of a Servant, she was brought into the world as the Once and Future King, the deliverer of salvation. There was no Grail to support her existence as a Servant in this world, because as the Once and Future King, there was an entirely different system that allowed her to manifest into the world. She was not a Heroic Spirit nor a Counter Guardian, so there had to be something else that helped her return back to life.

Now that the King of Knights had returned to the world, she had to do something that needed to be done. She reopened her eyes and looked at the sleeping Asia.

Her eyes were resolute. After learning of what had happened to Asia, there was one thing that she had on her mind. She had returned to this world by answering her prayer. Her purpose of returning back into the mortal world was to become a sword and a shield for a girl she considered a living saint. If there was one thing that needed to be done, it would be that she needed to eliminate all the things that could bring harm to her.

She was a king, and she still considered herself one. She killed her own emotions and personal feelings for the sake of her kingship. So, for the sake of someone she needed to protect, she would gladly kill her own emotions once again, and she would bathe her sword with the blood of those wretched creatures.

But, before she could get up from the bed she shared with Asia, Arturia felt a gentle tug on her sleeve. The king blinked and looked down, only to see Asia's tiny hand pinching on her sleeve. Arturia looked at Asia's face, to see whether she was awake or not. From what she could see, the girl was still sleeping.

Still, Asia was mumbling even though she was not awake. And she was also crying.

"Asia..." Arturia muttered. For a few moments, she just observed the sleeping girl. Then, she brought her hand to her face, caressing her cheek with her fingers and wiping her tears.

After seeing her like this, the king began to understand what she needed to do. Even though eliminating the elements that could bring harm to Asia was a correct course of action, it wasn't necessarily a right one. And she knew that Asia wouldn't approve of such a thing if she were to find out about it. While she would place Asia's safety above all else, she would not just go out to find those Fallen Angels and slaughter them. She might be pragmatic as a king, but she wouldn't debase herself to act like a common, honorless assassin.

In the end, instead of going out to hunt those Fallen Angels, Arturia decided to stay and remain by Asia's side. She was a little irked by the fact that the Fallen Angels that had been making Asia's life miserable and the Church that had excommunicated her just because she healed a Devil were able to get away from the consequences of their actions. Still, life wasn't fair and she was aware of it. The least she could do was to stay vigilant by Asia's side.

"Master… you are a pure person…" The king spoke softly. "I will protect you from those wretched creatures and those who wish you harm."

Gently, she stroked Asia's face, pushing the golden strands of hair aside.

"Even if the world wishes to be your enemy, I shall be your knight."

* * *

It was already late at night. At this hour, most people were already at home, leaving the streets empty besides a handful of people with questionable backgrounds. Also, at this hour, one could simply walk down the street without drawing people's attention due to the aforementioned emptiness of the streets.

Walking down the street was a person whose body was hidden beneath an all-encompassing cloak. Strapped on their back was a huge shield shaped like a cross. The person might end up grabbing people's attentions if not due to the time. So, during midnight where people were at homes, the cloaked person was able to walk around freely with the glaringly-conspicuous item strapped on their back without being a subject of attentions.

Still, the streets were not entirely empty considering that a handful of people with questionable backgrounds were still prowling the streets, minding their own businesses. They were mostly the members of local gangs who liked causing disturbances around the neighborhood.

When those gang members spotted the cloaked figure, they reacted to such a sight in their typical way.

"Pfft, what are you, a cosplayer?!"

"That's one big-ass shield..."

"Never saw you before..."

And so on. The gang members were surrounding the cloaked person, now that the person's appearance and that glaringly-conspicuous shield strapped on their back had caught their attentions. Some of them were laughing, ridiculing their appearance. One of them even tried to touch the shield that was strapped on the person's back.

"Please don't touch it."

The cloaked person spoke with a distinctly-feminine voice as a slender hand from beneath the cloak pushed the hand that tried to touch the shield away. Then the person moved forward, leaving the group of gang members without saying a word.

The one who tried to touch the shield, being someone who was easily offended by almost anything, considered this a sign of disrespect. In a typical gang member's way, he bellowed, "What was that just now?!" He tried to grab the person's shoulder to stop the person from walking away, but the moment his hand touched the person's shoulder, the gang member suddenly felt weightless. "Eh?" It was probably due to the fact that he was sent flying a few feet before crashing onto the pavement. "Urgh!"

"The hell?!"

The person with the shield strapped on their back was the one who sent the man flying. The others didn't know how the person was able to do such a thing effortlessly, but before they could do anything like attacking the person head-on, the person turned to face the others and pulled down the hood that had been covering the entirety of their head, revealing the face of a silver-haired girl with chin-length hair. One of her eyes was covered by her bang.

"I would rather not harm anyone, but if any of you try to attack me, then I shall not show any mercy."

The girl spoke to the gang members with a calm, even tone, but somehow, they felt chills sent down their spines as they looked into the girl's eyes. It felt like there was something in those eyes that compelled them to stay back. Despite her unimpressive stature, the look of her eyes somehow frightened them.

Finally, the gang members decided that she was not worth the trouble. One of them helped the one who was blown away back on his feet while others muttered something, calling the girl a freak. After the gang members left, the girl was finally alone.

Letting out a sigh of relief, the girl adjusted the large, cross-shaped shield that was strapped on her back before she spun on her heel, making a clinking sound as she moved. She seemed to be wearing something like high-heeled greaves. After making sure that there was no one around her, she pulled the hood of her cloak back on, once again covering her head with it.

She looked at the night sky for a while before she walked down the street once again. As she walked, she was muttering something.

"Arthur... my king, Arthur..."

With the sounds of her footsteps filling the silence around the streets, the strange girl disappeared into the night.

 **TO BE CONTINUED**

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Hello, this is me, Prince Arjuna. As you might have noticed, I deleted Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 due to me being dissatisfied by the direction of where this story is going. So, in order to remedy that, I decided to rewrite both chapters, taking out some elements that I thought wasn't good and replaced with something different. And here we are, the rewritten version of Chapter 2 of The Once and Future King. I changed the part where Arturia killed those Fallen Angels with something else, and I hope you guys will like this one better. And in case if you guys want to review this chapter but unable to do so because you might already have reviewed the previous Chapter 2 earlier, you can just review this chapter via anonymous review. Don't hesitate to leave some reviews about your thoughts because the writer may need it to replenish his creativity juice.

Also, special thanks for **Sorata Shioya** for beta-reading this chapter. It's so nice working alongside you, as always. The rewritten version of Chapter 3 will come up soon, so please wait for it.

 **Prince Arjuna (2015)**


	3. Chapter 3

Arturia Pendragon opened her eyes as she stood in the middle of the clearing in Avalon. Clad in her shining armor, she stood there motionlessly as she gazed up to look at the blue sky. As this place was outside of time and space, the World was incapable of influencing this realm, an ideal resting place for the destined deliverer of salvation, the Once and Future King.

The king let out a soft sigh. Even though she had chosen to appear in the world after answering Asia Argento's prayer, she was still connected to Avalon. After all, Avalon played a large part in supporting her existence as a Servant-like entity in the world. So, whenever she was sleeping in the real world, her consciousness would return to Avalon until she woke up. The downside of this was that she would be incapable of having dreams, but for the king, it wasn't truly a problem.

Now that her consciousness had returned to Avalon while she was sleeping on a bed in the Hyoudou residence, Arturia figured that she might as well do something. So, she closed her eyes as she concentrated her willpower, utilizing one of her newfound powers as the Once and Future King granted by Avalon itself.

A sword descended from the sky, landing a few inches away from Arturia. Then, a few more weapons zoomed down from the sky, stabbing the ground around her. When she opened her eyes, she saw more than a dozen weapons around her, stabbing the ground like tombstones in a graveyard. Ornate swords, spears, lances and many other weapons that she had used during her lifetime were around her, recreated by this realm to be utilized by the king.

Arturia reached out for one of the swords and pulled it out from the ground. Holding it by its black hilt, she examined the blade that was bluish gray in color. It was one of the swords that she wielded during her life, the magical sword Chastiefol. It was a sword enchanted by the court magus of the Round Table himself, Merlin. It wasn't as powerful as the sword of promised victory itself, Excalibur, but it was still a legendary sword wielded by the King of Knights. At the very least, it could withstand the force of Strike Air and make a decent substitute for Excalibur. It was the very same sword that she used to cut the arm of the Fallen Angel, Raynare, after Arturia's materialization into the world.

Next, after placing Chastiefol back at its original spawning point, she pulled out a spear from the ground. It was a holy lance that she used while battling the Knight of Treachery, Mordred, during the Battle of Camlann. The king slew the traitorous knight by piercing through the knight's armored chest with this holy lance, Rhongomyniad. Speaking of Mordred, Arturia was unsure what to think of that bastard 'son' of hers. Despite being on opposite sides during the conflicts, the king bore no hatred towards the rebellious knight. Still, being a king, it was her responsibility to deal with Mordred's rebellion. Arturia could only wonder if things might have gone differently if she took a different course of action.

Arturia sighed again as she stabbed the spear into the ground. Besides being a weapon that she used to slay her rebellious bastard of a son, she also used it to kill her uncle, Vortigern, an ambitious man who wished to seize power and rule Britain for himself. It was said that Vortigern was a man who bore the essence of a white dragon, and she still remembered fighting his draconic form before she used Rhongomyniad to slay him. When she thought about it, the weapon seemed to be well-known to be the one she used to commit avunculicide and filicide. It would be the case for the latter if she considered Mordred as her 'son'.

After stabbing the holy lance back into the ground, she examined the rest of her weapons. All the weapons that she once used and the ones that were attributed to her were recreated by Avalon. Her daggers, Carnwennan and Flixith, were also there. Even Clarent, the sword stolen by Mordred, appeared thanks to Avalon. Still, there were three of them that were missing.

The first, of course, was Excalibur, the sword of promised victory. Because it was not a creation of man, as well as being already returned to the Lady of the Lake, the holy sword was not created by Avalon. Her other sword, Caliburn, also wasn't there. The same went for her sheath, Avalon. While she might be able to reside in Avalon as the Once and Future King, the sheath that shared its name with the realm was not in her possession, as she had already lost it before the Battle of Camlann, the final battle that she fought as the king of Camelot.

Still, even without all those weapons in her possession, she would make do with what she had at the moment. After all, she wasn't the type to complain about this sort of thing. All things considered, she believed that with all the weapons that she had at the moment, she would perform her task that she had assigned for herself: protect Asia Argento. While the task itself wasn't as grand as becoming the king of a nation or participating in a battle royale with a nigh-omnipotent wish-granting artifact for a prize, as a knight, she would dedicate herself to fulfill the task.

The king smiled as she took Chastiefol again in her hand. There was no regret left in her, even though she knew that her kingship had brought her beloved kingdom to its downfall. While there might be some lingering sadness, after everything that she went through by making a deal with Alaya and participating in the Holy Grail Wars, she knew that her following her ideals wasn't a mistake. Just like a certain boy, and by extension an embittered man who sacrificed his afterlife for the sake of the justice he believed in, she would say those words with perfect clarity.

"I… I was not wrong…"

* * *

When Asia opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was the unfamiliar ceiling above her. That was when she recalled what happened last night, when Raynare suddenly showed up and assaulted her friend, Issei. After receiving a brutal beatdown from the Fallen Angel, an armored woman who called herself Arturia Pendragon then appeared out of nowhere to chase Raynare away, saving Issei from being killed.

At first, she thought everything that happened last night was just a dream, but she was proven wrong when she saw Arturia sitting on her bed. She was already clad in her white blouse and blue skirt, with a pair of black leggings underneath her skirt. When Arturia realized that Asia had woken up, she gave her a gentle smile.

"Good morning, Asia," Arturia said.

"G-good morning, Miss A-Arturia!" Asia replied hastily. "Umm…"

"Please do not worry. Everything is fine now," Arturia said to the younger blond female. While she would never guarantee that the Fallen Angels wouldn't make their move to go and find Asia in order to take her back, one thing she was certain about was that she would not let those wretched creatures come near her. She would protect her master with everything she had, and she would cut down anyone who wanted to endanger Asia. When the ex-nun gave her a confused look, Arturia added, "As long as I am here, I will make sure that nothing shall harm you."

"Umm… w-well…" Asia seemed a little embarrassed upon hearing what Arturia had told her. But before she could say anything to reply to her, her stomach growled. "E-eh?!" The ex-nun realized that she had yet to eat anything since last night.

"Ah, I take it that you must be hungry…" Arturia gave Asia an amused look before she got up from the bed. "Breakfast is almost ready downstairs. Your friend's mother informed me earlier while you were still asleep that we should join them once you have woken up."

At first, Asia was reluctant, but due to how hungry she felt, she just weakly nodded.

"Good." Arturia smiled. "Let us go now. After all, hunger is an enemy. And I believe your friend and his parents are waiting for us to show up. Let us not keep them waiting any longer," she said before she went to open the door. "I'll be waiting outside, Master. Please change your clothes first."

"R-right!" Asia squeaked.

After Asia was done changing her clothes, both of them went downstairs to join the Hyoudou family for breakfast. Asia's friend, Issei Hyoudou, seemed to be in a rather good mood when both Asia and Arturia joined them.

As both Arturia and Asia enjoyed their breakfast together with the Hyoudous, there was something that Arturia had noticed about the boy she saved yesterday. She didn't notice it when she appeared to save him from being killed by Raynare, but now that she managed to get a good look at him, she finally realized something she had missed.

Issei Hyoudou was not a human. Or at least, he used to be one before being turned into something non-human.

Just learning about such a thing was enough to make her wary of the boy. Or at least be cautious of him.

Even so, Arturia wasn't so quick to judge based on one's race. Even if the boy wasn't a human, she wouldn't deem him dangerous, especially since he was Asia's friend. If she had to guess, Issei might be some sort of demonic being who was recently turned. And both his parents were still humans, from what she could tell. As long as he didn't pose any threats towards Asia, Arturia didn't see any reason to harm him.

And it's not like she's not used to having the company of someone with a non-human heritage in the first place. After all, her court mage, Merlin, was a half-incubus. While she might consider that old, perverted mage a thorn in her side due to his mischievous nature, she was still grateful for his assistance during her reign as the king of Camelot.

Back to the topic about Issei being a non-human, she did not wish to harm him due to the fact that he was Asia's friend, and she considered him to be relatively harmless. After all, she appeared before the ex-nun after answering her prayer to save Issei from being killed by Raynare.

Still, seeing Issei's attitude somehow reminded her of Merlin, whose perverseness brought a multitude of troubles to her and the kingdom more often than not. Still, while Issei's perverseness might rival Merlin's, he seemed to be a well-meaning and good-natured young man who befriended Asia. She might not approve of his perverted behavior, but at least she was glad that such a lad was a good friend to Asia.

After breakfast, Issei went to school, and both Asia and Arturia remained at the Hyoudou residence. Although she was grateful of having a temporary shelter, it's not like she wanted to remain like this forever. She had no money with her, so she had no means of supporting Asia financially. So, the first thing that she needed to worry about was to find a source of income.

In short, she needed to find a job.

But, she couldn't simply apply for any jobs out there due to her having no identification documents with her. It's not like she somehow magically got them upon her materialization into the world. Even so, she needed to find a job where she could put her skills to good use. As long as the job wasn't demeaning or worse, besmirching her honor as a knight, she was willing to do it. It was all for the sake of Asia.

Still, it was too early for that. To jump headlong into battle without prior planning was a suicidal action to be taken, and as a king who used to lead her army in battles, she was aware of the importance of planning and strategizing. In order to find the most suitable job for her to take, she needed to meticulously take the right course of actions. So, she believed that she needed to consult someone regarding this matter. And she decided that Mrs. Hyoudou was the perfect choice, considering that she seemed to have a good head on her shoulders, her eccentricity notwithstanding.

"I'll see what I can find for you. I think some of my neighbors keep the flyers for job applications. I'm sure there will be a job that is suitable for you."

Mrs. Hyoudou told her that she would gather flyers for job applications for her, and Arturia was grateful for her help. While she might fail a bit as a mother, considering that her son had grown into quite a deviant, there's no denying that she was a good-hearted person. Somehow, the motherly way she used while talking to her reminded her of her own 'queen', Guinevere.

As Arturia reminisced about people from her past and the chain of events that led to the ruination of her kingdom, she flinched a bit, showing a troubled expression. While she had moved beyond her own regret, she still couldn't help but feel sad. Mrs. Hyoudou seemed to notice this and offered Arturia a kind smile.

"I see that you have a lot of baggage on you right now, Arturia-san. I suppose that's the reason why you're here with Asia-chan, right?"

That wasn't really it, Arturia thought, but due to how complicated the situation that both Arturia and Asia had, she believed that Mrs. Hyoudou might be somewhat right in her assessment. "I suppose you can say that, Mrs. Hyoudou..."

"Well, I won't force you to tell me everything, but in case you want someone to hear you out, I'm all ears," Mrs. Hyoudou said, smiling.

Seeing the kind smile on the matron of the Hyoudou family made the king smile as well. She was truly a woman with a big heart, the king thought to herself. "I'll keep that in mind, then. And you have my gratitude, Mrs. Hyoudou, for providing a shelter for me and my sister," Arturia said. She wasn't used to lying due to her being an honor-bound knight, but in this case, telling the woman that she was King Arthur reborn to be the deliverer of salvation wasn't a wise move. So, that was their cover story to keep everything simple.

"It's fine, really," Mrs. Hyoudou said. "So, you want to find a job so that you can support both yourself and Asia-chan financially, right?"

Arturia nodded. "Yes, that is what I have in my mind."

"What sort of job do you want to take, then?" Mrs. Hyoudou asked.

"As long as the job is not demeaning, I am willing to take it," Arturia answered.

"Hmm..." Mrs. Hyoudou brought her hand to her chin as if she was stroking a beard that wasn't there. "Is there anything you're good at?"

Fighting fellow Servants in a battle royale to win a nigh-omnipotent wish-granting artifact, the king thought, but she kept that to herself. "I believe I have my confidence in my skills with sword. I also have some experience in being a bodyguard for others." She paused for a moment to consider what else she was proficient in. "Ah, I believe I am rather skilled at riding motorbikes." Her experience in riding one during the Fourth Holy Grail War came to mind.

"Ah, I see..." Mrs. Hyoudou mused. "I'll take what you said into consideration while finding the right flyers for job applications for you, Arturia-san."

"Thank you once again, Mrs. Hyoudou..." Arturia bowed slightly, showing her gratefulness to the matron of Hyoudou family.

After consulting Mrs. Hyoudou, Arturia went to the living room, where Asia was seen sitting in front of a television, seemingly engrossed by an anime that was being shown on the screen. She was scrunching her brow, as if trying to comprehend the dialogues. That was already expected, because she was unable to speak proper Japanese.

The sight of the ex-nun trying to understand the dialogues was quite an adorable sight to behold, and the king had to admit that seeing her that way was refreshing. After all, it was much better than seeing her crying or being sad. Thinking that she had nothing else to do, Arturia went to Asia and sat next to her on the sofa. She decided to watch the anime together with her, assisting her to understand the Japanese language more.

* * *

Issei Hyoudou was on his way home from school. A silly grin was seen plastered on that mug of his, probably thanks to the members of the Occult Research Club that he joined not too long ago. Thanks to him being killed by his ex-girlfriend before, he was turned into a Devil by Rias Gremory, the president of the Occult Research Club, who was also a Devil. She had informed him that being turned into a Devil was a major boon, because he could make a harem if he worked hard towards it.

He also looked forward to returning home to talk to Asia some more. A lot of things had happened, and now she was living with him, thanks to the assistance of that person who called herself Arturia Pendragon. He didn't know who she was, but one thing he was sure about was that she saved his life when he was almost killed by Raynare. He was truly grateful for her help. And it also helped that she was very pretty.

The perverted boy was so engrossed in his thoughts about Arturia that he didn't realize there was something lying on the middle of the street. When he finally realized it, it was already too late as he tripped on it, causing him to fall unceremoniously onto the pavement, headfirst. "Ow!" Feeling that his nose was bleeding, he immediately picked himself up and looked at the thing that caused him to trip, only to realize that it was actually a person who was unconscious.

Seeing an unconscious person lying in the middle of a street, Issei immediately rushed to the person's side. He grabbed the person's body and pulled down the hood that covered the person's head, only to find out that the person was a cute girl with silver hair. Her right eye was covered by her bang. The girl was still breathing, which indicated that the girl was still alive, much to his relief.

Still, the girl was cute, and Issei couldn't help but be mesmerized by such cuteness. As he beheld the girl's cute look, the girl let out a groan before she slowly opened her eyes, revealing a pair of violet pupils. Well, only one pupil, considering that one of her eyes was covered by her bang. Groggily, she looked at Issei's face, and their gazes met each other.

"Who are you?" The girl asked. Her voice was soft. She seemed rather bemused when she found herself being held by Issei.

"Oh, umm..." While he might be a pervert, Issei couldn't help but be flustered by the fact that such a cute girl talked to him. As he tried to come up with something, they heard a growling sound, which somehow came from the girl's stomach. "Eh?"

"Ah..." The girl seemed to realize what the sound actually indicated. "...I'm hungry."

 **TO BE CONTINUED**

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Hello, this is me, Prince Arjuna. So, this is the rewritten version of Chapter 3. I'm sorry for the inconvenience caused by the deletion of both Chapter 2 and Chapter 3. So, I hope you'll like this version better. Also, in case if you want to review this but had already reviewed the previous Chapter 3, feel free to use anonymous reviews. Please leave some reviews so that the author can be a happy panda.

Special thanks for **Sorata Shioya** for beta-reading this chapter. It's so nice to work with you, like always. Please stay tuned for the next update, people. Until then, farewell.

Prince Arjuna (2015)


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